Date: Fri, 20 Jul 2007 08:17:58 -0700 (PDT)
From: D B
Subject: Life Goes On - David and Chad #64
STANDARD DISCLAIMER: This is the continuation of David's story. One of two
boys loving each other. So the same disclaimer applies. If you can't
handle that, or it's illegal to read this in your area, or you're underage,
then now is the time to leave. If you continue reading after that
admonishment, Nifty and I aren't responsible.
There could also be incidents of unprotected sex. As always, I don't
condone this practice - especially in this day and age.
My apologies for my unplanned hiatus. Lots going on in Fuppie's world
during the last few months. Thanks for the emails and concern. But things
are cool at the moment. I have read everyone's email, but - to be honest -
probably won't reply this time. Nothing against anyone, but time
constraints are a big factor....do I answer a plethora of emails (that I
haven't had time to answer yet), or write?
Although this might not be the time and place, I'm dedicating this chapter
to two people. One of my best friends died in a car accident about a month
ago, he was 35. And to "Karen Murray," who passed on in early May.
We don't know what we have until it's gone sometimes...Live life.
Take care, and be safe.
Fup
FROM CHAPTER 63
"C'mon, let's get you home before you explode. I really don't wanna clean
up the mess."
"Goof," Chad replied, opening the door.
"Takes one...." David answered, popping Chad on the butt with the back of
his hand.
"Hey! That's my butt."
David laughed, "Yep, c'mon, let's hit the road."
LIFE GOES ON - DAVID AND CHAD #64 - Communication Breakdown
David hung up the phone after another unsuccessful attempt. This time the
receiver elicited a "bing" from the wall phone when he replaced it in the
cradle. He'd been trying to call Chad for the last half-hour. It was New
Year's Eve and he had been preparing for Chad's visit most of the day. He
looked at the clock, three in the afternoon. Lynn had finally gotten
dressed for the New year's dance and was on her way to Jay's. His parents
had been gone since about two for their festivities. David reached for the
phone again, then shook his head. "A watched pot never boils," he mumbled
to himself, sliding off the barstool. He grabbed his car keys and went out
to start the car, shivering at the gray sky - "looks like snow" - and the
below freezing temperature - "feels like snow."
"C'mon Chad, where are you?" he asked himself.
Receiving no answer from anyone, including himself, he waited for the car
heater to take the edge off the cold then climbed in and headed for town.
He drove aimlessly for almost an hour and headed back home. David managed
to wait almost five whole minutes before he was reaching for the phone
again. This time it was answered on the third ring.
"Hi Karen, it's Dave."
"Oh hi, David. Ready for the new year?"
"Kinda, yeah, new beginnings and all that," David chuckled.
She laughed back. "Well, I guess you want to talk to the hellion."
"Yep."
"Okay, he's getting dressed. Hold on a few minutes."
"Sure," he replied, hearing Karen yell for Chad.
"Hey Dave," came Chad's panting voice less than a minute later.
"Hey kiddo. Getting dressed for a date?" David asked slyly.
"Yeah, I guess. Mom and me went out to buy a suit," Chad replied. David
could hear the shudder in Chad's voice. Like David, he wasn't one who
enjoyed wearing 'dress-up' clothes.
David chuckled, "A suit? Wow, kiddo, didn't know I was that important."
"Huh? Oh shut up, Dave," Chad replied. "It's for tonight."
"Yeah, that's what I meant," David replied, still grinning. Then he began
to put two and two together. His grin faded as he realized that somehow
his plans had just fallen through. "A suit, huh?"
"Yeah, Mom said I should dress up for this stupid dance tonight. I wanted
to wear jeans and a nice shirt, but she got kinda mad."
"Oh, yeah, well it's important to look nice sometimes," David replied
neutrally.
"I guess," Chad snorted. Then asked, "So what are you doing tonight?"
David paused and bit off the reply on the tip of his tongue. "Oh, not
much." He started to say something else then stopped.
"What's wrong, Dave?" Chad asked.
David jerked slightly. He had forgotten about how good Chad had become
reading his emotions through his voice. "Ummm, nothing, why?"
"Well, you always do something on New Year's. Even if it's just
'babysitting' us."
"Yeah, but you don't need that anymore," David replied, hearing the edge in
his voice.
"Something's wrong. You're mad."
"No, I'm not mad, Chad."
"Okay, well, you sound like it."
"Sorry. Guess I'm just tired. Got up early and cleaned up the basement
and stuff."
"Oh, that sounds fun," Chad scoffed.
"Coulda been," David replied. "Well, Chad, I better get off of here. Have
a good time tonight and I'll see you before I go back to school."
"Okay, I'm looking forward to it. All I gotta do is get through tonight,"
the teen sighed.
"Yep, I'll see ya later. Bye, kiddo."
David heard Chad's faint 'bye' as he replaced the receiver. He sat there a
few moments, then slid off the barstool. He was shaking slightly, emotions
running wild through his mind. Walking slowly back the hall into the
bathroom, he was taken aback at his reflection in the mirror. "Man, you're
pissed," he mumbled to his red-faced visage. "Get a grip," he almost
yelled.
David wandered out to the living room and sat heavily in the recliner. He
still couldn't believe Chad had forgotten their plans and was going to the
dance instead of...well, instead of. His eyes were burning slightly, his
stomach was in knots, his fists clenched. "Dammit," he groaned softly.
"Fuckit," David said a few minutes later, jerking himself off the chair.
He grabbed his car keys again, and made the drive back to town. "Well, I'm
gonna have a good time," he thought harshly, pulling into the drive-thru.
"Yeah, let me have two sixes of Michelob, please," he said to the woman in
the window of the liquor store. Placing the paper bag on the passenger
seat, he paid for his 'entertainment' and drove back home, popping the tab
on one of the cans when he got out of town. The cold, slightly bitter
taste of the beer made him smile. "Here's to you, Greg," he toasted the
windshield, draining the can. David drove along the back roads for a
while, finishing three more cans, before heading home. He was starting to
feel the effects, and tonight wouldn't be a good night to get pulled over.
David swung into the driveway, grabbed his purchase, snagged another can
out of the six- pack, and plopped back down on the recliner after placing
the rest in the fridge. He fidgeted for a while, took a long swig out of
the can, then turned on the TV. "It's only six, and you have the whole
night ahead of you," he mumbled to himself as he half-watched the western
on the tube.
David was on his sixth beer when the doorbell rang. "What the hell?" he
said out loud, slid off the chair and walked to the kitchen door. A
smiling, well-dressed Chad was standing outside. David gave him a small
wave and motioned him inside. "Hey, kiddo, you look sharp."
"Thanks," Chad answered, then noticed the can in David's hand. "What's up
with that?"
"Oh this? Not much, just bringing in the New Year," David laughed, sitting
on a barstool.
"It's not even close yet," Chad replied, his smile dropping.
"Well, I got enough to make it," the older youth responded.
"How come you're doing that?"
"Well, my friend, I thought I had plans tonight, but they fell through. So
I thought I'd celebrate anyway."
"Ummm, okay, so what plans?"
David laughed sharply and replied, "Come on." He slid off the stool and
started walking toward the basement door, Chad following. "See, I thought
it was all planned." Walking unsteadily down the 12 steps, he motioned to
the mattress next to the pool table. "I was going to have a friend over to
spend the night, but it kinda fell through."
Even in his slightly inebriated state, David saw the pieces fall into place
in the blond teenager's head. "Oh shit," Chad mumbled.
"Yeah, oh shit," David grinned, haphazardly.
"Dave, I'm really sorry, I forgot. Mom was all excited about me wanting to
take a girl out and she thought it'd be good to take her to a dance, and
the dance is tonight, and well....I'm sorry," Chad wound down, hanging his
head.
David shrugged, walked by his blond boyfriend, and started up the steps.
"Yeah, well, it's okay. I have other plans too."
"Dave, c'mon," Chad pleaded. "You're mad."
David spun around, almost losing his balance. "No, I'm not. I was mad a
couple hours ago, but not now. As a matter of fact, I'm feeling pretty
fucking happy at the moment."
"I'm so stupid," Chad said as he followed David up the steps.
"I dunno, maybe I'm the one," David replied softly.
As they reached the top of the steps, a car horn tooted. "Shit, I have to
go."
"It's okay, Chad. You have an important date."
"I had one and I screwed it up," Chad replied.
David finally looked into Chad's face. The brown eyes were swimming and
the downcast look was enough to settle David's emotions slightly. "Well, I
guess we should really think about stuff," he said slowly. "Listen, don't
worry about me, I'll be fine, okay? I'm a big boy."
"Can we maybe get together tomorrow?" Chad asked softly.
"Sure, whatever, whenever, I'll probably go back to school a couple days
early though."
The car horn sounded again. David noticed Chad's torn reaction to the
sound. "Are you gonna be okay?" the blond boy asked.
David made a dismissive gesture. "Sure, go on and have fun. You look
nice, by the way. She'll be impressed."
"Right now, I don't really care," Chad answered, walking over and giving
David a quick but fierce hug.
"Hey, save that for the ladies," David joked.
"Don't wanna," Chad replied. "I'll call you tomorrow, okay?"
David shrugged, "Sounds cool. Have a good time."
Chad turned away to leave, then turned back. "Love you, Dave."
David first reaction was to wrap Chad in a huge hug and tell him everything
was going to be okay. But he held himself back. He drew in a breath and
softly replied, "Me too. Now get going before your mom has a heart
attack."
"Is it going to be okay?" Chad asked.
David shrugged. "Guess we'll find out, huh?"
"Well, I.....," Chad started, then both heard the sound of a car door
closing. "I'd better go."
"Yeah," David answered. "Have fun."
"Doubt it," Chad scoffed, then was through the door.
"C'ya," David whispered to the door as he listened to the Murray's car back
out of the driveway. He finished the can in his hand with a long swallow
and tossed it in the trash can. "Well, ol' boy, ya better slow down. Only
got six left." He wandered back into the living room and sat heavily on
the recliner. Extending the chair to its full laid back position, David
closed his eyes and opened his mind to the thoughts that were pounding
through it.
"Well, it was good while it lasted," he mumbled. "Guess I should have
taken Greg up on his offers. At least I'm there more than I'm here."
Those thoughts, and ones like them, continued to run across his mind until
he dozed off.
It was about ten-thirty when he woke up again. David groaned slightly into
the darkness of the living room as his eyes slowly opened. The lingering
effects of the six-pack were still present as he eased off the chair and
walked through the darkened house to the bathroom. The bright light over
the vanity drove into his eyes as he flipped the switch. Quickly dousing
the light, he relieved some of the pressure in his bladder, then squinted
his eyes shut as he flipped on the light again.
He slowly cracked his eyes open, letting them adjust to the brightness,
then snorted at the reflection in the mirror, "You look like shit." David
leaned in closer to the mirror and studied the face there. After a few
moments he shrugged, splashed water on his face, and turned off the light.
Sitting back down in the chair, he thought about grabbing another beer, but
decided against it. "No sense in adding insult to injury," he thought.
Thoughts continued to race in his mind, Greg, Chad, Kel, his other friends.
Why did it have to be so difficult? Why did he have to be THIS different?
Then another thought slammed home. If HE felt this way, what about Chad?
"Christ, Dave, put yourself in the kid's shoes," he admonished himself in a
low voice. David remembered how difficult it was when he and Kel were in
high school, the pressures of trying to be 'normal' in a sea of normalcy
when you weren't. Chad was going through the same thing right now. Maybe
the best thing was just to let go and let Chad be normal. Why should he be
the one putting this kind of pressure on his younger friend? It wasn't
fair to either of them.
Then the 'buts' started. But Chad was the one who started all of this,
wasn't he? But the teenager obviously loved the time he spent with David
and enjoyed everything they did. But did he really? "This is bullshit,"
David snorted. "Beating a dead horse." He sighed heavily. He grinned to
himself, there was one good 'but' in all of this. Chad did have a nice
butt. David rolled his eyes, no sense in going there. He was just getting
up to get another brew when he heard a car pull into the driveway. Looking
out the side window, he was startled to see Karen's car. Immediately, he
looked to the passenger side. She was alone and getting out of the car.
"Shit. Now what?"
David hurried back the hallway to the bathroom, squeezed a dollop of
toothpaste onto his fingertip and scrubbed his teeth and tongue with the
paste. Spitting the remainder into the sink, he rinsed quickly and was
just reaching the kitchen when the doorbell rang. Drawing in a breath, he
opened the door and invited his boyfriend's mother inside.
"Hi Karen, what brings you here?"
She gave him a small smile and answered, "Well, I'm here at the request of
my youngest."
"Oh?"
"Yes, he seemed to be a little depressed when he got back into the car, and
I was wondering what you two talked about."
David's stomach fluttered a little. "Well, not much really. I told him he
looked nice and that his date was a lucky lady."
"You know, Dave, I almost had to drag him out today to get a suit." She
chuckled. "They don't call them 'monkey suits' for nothing. He squirmed
and complained like one."
David returned the chuckle. "Yeah, well, he didn't look comfortable,
that's for sure. But he did look nice."
"That's what I tried to tell him. All he did was make faces."
"That's Chad," David laughed.
"So is that the only reason he's feeling down?"
"I don't think so. There's probably some other stuff going through that
blond head of his."
"Well, he doesn't tell me anything anymore," Karen sighed.
David grinned. "Well, speaking from experience, at his age, parents are
kind of the enemy."
"Well, I was just wondering if he had told you anything. He talks to you
more than us now."
David detected a slight change of tone in her voice with the last comment.
"Well, Karen, I'm pretty sure it's normal. And I'd definitely tell you
anything that really mattered."
"I know, David. I'm being kind of, how do the kids say, 'dumb'."
"Nah, you're being a mom," David laughed. "Mine does the same thing to
me."
"Comes with the territory," Karen smiled. "He also said that you were in a
bad mood."
"Well, I guess some," David admitted. "Kinda had some big plans tonight,
and they fell through."
Karen looked at David closely. "Were they with Chad?"
"Umm, well, kind of, yeah," David admitted.
She nodded. "Did he forget?"
"Well, I should have known better, now that he's got a girlfriend and all.
His priorities have changed, I guess."
"Well, I wouldn't say that, David. He was very concerned about you when he
left here earlier."
"Ahhh," David said with a dismissive wave of his hand, "I get in these
moods sometimes."
"Don't we all?"
David smiled. "Too true."
Karen became serious. "David, Chad really likes you. I guess you could
say he loves you like an older brother." David felt the flush creep up his
neck as Karen continued. "If I wouldn't have said I'd stop by, he would
have come back with me. Now, do you think 'his priorities have changed'?"
David was now red-faced. He could feel the heat from his face and neck.
"Well, you know, I like him a lot too. He's pretty special."
"Well, that's a good way to put it," Karen smiled, then sighed. "Well, if
I have your word you'll let us know anything serious, I guess I can live
with a non-talkative teenager for a while."
"No sweat."
"Good. He also said you were heading back to school early."
David nodded. "Yeah, kinda thinking about it."
"Well, he's worried that he won't get to see you before you go."
David chuckled. "Well, no worries there. We'll do something before I go."
"Good, I'll make sure I pass that along when I pick him up." She turned
toward the door. "Don't disappoint him, David."
"Umm, I won't."
"Good. Thanks for the chat."
"No problem. Tell him I said he worries too much," David laughed.
"I will. Bye."
"See ya."
When she was gone, David made his way back into the living room and resumed
his place on the recliner. He closed his eyes and thought about the
conversation he just had. "You really need to lighten up," he admonished
himself. A few minutes later, he turned off the television and slipped
into bed. The ball would drop without him this year.
Until later, friends, take care.
Please feel free to contact me with any questions or feedback. Thanks!
My email is:
fupduck_il@yahoo.com
Fup